Selective capacity water heater



March 6, 195] w w l s 2,544,458

SELECTIVE CAPACITY WATER HEATER Filed Dec. 15, 1948 IN V EN TOR.

am! v/jmd/ ATTOR NEYS.

Waldo WHzlgyins I Patented 'Mar. 6, 1951 ,i r.-

' UNITED, STATE r OFFICE Waldo Kankakee lll 'assignor to A. 0. 'Smith'Corporation,"Milwaukee; Wis; a" corporationo'f N cw York p QApplication December 13, Serial No.64,955

.This invention relates to a water heater and has particular. referenceto a water heater in 'which.the heating. element. is adjustable tose-.lectiiz'dpositions tovvarydthe quantity of hot water'made available by.the heater.

The principal object of the invention is. to

provide a water heater adapted to supply selected quantities of hotwater. i .7

Another object is to provide a water heater of selective capacity toeliminate costs attendant upon the purchase andinstallation of.I-heaters with diflerent capacitieslas hot water require.- mentschange.

' A further object istoprovide a water heater 'wherein a simplifiedadjustment of the ielectric heating element makes it possible to supplyvary-- ii ig qua'ntities of hot water withlow costs to make the changein capacity. -A further object is to-provide a water heater various ofselective capacityin-which the heating eleinent' can beadjusted-r'eadily-to differ at positions from outside the heater. j;Another object is to provide a rotatable heating element for a waterheater with oiiset coils to assumedifierent positions in the heater uponrotation.-

- I" 511 These and other objects of the invention" will appearhereinafter in connection withithe following description of severalembodiments of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying d awin In"the drawing? Figure 1 is a sideelevational view partly in section of anelectrically heated h'ot'iwater tank showing the heating element inintermediate r position;

Fig. 2 is anenlargedtransversesection taken on the line"2-2 of Figure 1,showing the heating element by full lines in intermediate position andby .broken'lines' inflower position; Fig. 3 is a vertical section takenon line 3+3 of Figure 1 witlr'th'e heating element shown-by full linesin upper position and by broken lines in lower position;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view 01' the heating element shown in thepreceding figures; and

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a heating element in which the coil isshown as straight.

The drawings illustrate in general a metal water heater tank I in whichthe water in the tank is heated by the electric heating element soiaims.(o1. sis-49';

2 which projects into the tank through a suitable opening 3 in the wallthereof.

Element 2 comprises a pair of nonheating which are secured, at one endto the flange 5 located onthe outtside of tank I and merge -at the otherend into the heating coils 6. 1 Flange 5 is of agenerally square shapeand is apertured atthe corners to enable assembly over four equallyspaced studs 1, which are welded to the tank wall around opening 3. Theouter ends of studs 1 are threaded to receive nuts 8 which are threadedhome .on the studs against flange 5 to secure the element in place.Opening 3 is suitably sealed to prevent escape of fluid between flange 5and the wall of tank 1 around the opening. The sealing means and supportfor flange .5 may be of different constructions and form no part of theinvention. Coils 6 are oifset from a center line through flange 5 toenable adjustment of the coils to to the curvature of the-tank-or, asshownin Fig.5; the coils mayextend straightly from the nonheating leadsor supports 4 in the position of a chord to the curved coils. The curvedcoils are preferred so as to enable locating the coils to higher andlower positions in'the tank than is obtainablelby thestraight coils.

The invention is predicated on the fact that hot water within the tankstratifies upon heating so that the heated water occupies that portionof the tank above the heating coils B and relatively cold water isdisposed below the coils. Thus by moving the heating coils to variablepositions .within the tank the depth or quantity of the water heatedwithin the" tank may be changed;

I As shown in the particular illustration, hot water is drawn ofl' fromthetop of tank I through pipe .8 and cold water enters the tank at thebottom through pipe l0. Electric current is suppliedto the heatingelement by leads ll.

For purposes of illustration, assume that the capacity of tank I iseighty gallons and that coils offset and shaped to the curvature of thetank are provided. With a construction for supporting the heating coils6 as above-described, coils 6 may be moved to three difierent positionswithin the tank merely by removing nuts 8 from studs 1 and rotatingflange 5 either to the right or left so that it is located on studs 1 indifferent rotative positions.

Thus if the flange 5 is located in One position, the coils 6 assume anuppermost location, as illustrated in Fig. 3, and the water above thecoils is hot while that below is relatively cold. In the If straightcoils, as illustrated in Fig. 5, are.

employed, then upon movement of the coils to uppermost, intermediate andlowermostpositions;

the hot water available becomes, respectively,

fifty-five gallons, sixty-five gallons and seventyfive gallons.

Some suitable marking may be provided on flange so that the serviceman.can ascertainthe gallons of hot water made available. by the.

various positions of the flange.

The change over from one capacity of another is readily made fromoutside the tank. Anyservice charges that may berequired to convert-atank to several different capacities of hot-water delivery are held to.a minimum. Thus one'tank serves where before at least three wererequired.

Th invention is, ofcourse, applicable to different sized tanks, andthe-gallons or hot water to be delivered may be varied indiiferent tanksandin the same tank by proper construc- .tion of the element.

The particular supportfor the coils. including the. flange 5 and studs7. are merely. illustrative of onetype of connection which maybeemployed as the invention is, directed solely to; a heating elementadjustable to diilerent positions within :the tank fromthe outside.

Various embodiments of the invention mays-be employed within the scopeof the: accompanying claims.

I claim: I 1. In a hotwater tank adaptedyfor providing selectedquantities of hot water, anelectric heating element comprising anon-heating support ,mounted in an opening in the wall of said tank andprojecting inwardly ofthe; tank; with the ,inner.,portion thereof offsetlaterally from said opening, a heating coil: extending within said tankfrom the offset portion of said support, and means to rotate thesupportto move said heating coil to a plurality of selectediheatingpositions within the tank. .to-'supply selected quantities of hot waterunder'stratification-of. the water, wherein. the water above, theheating coil is hot and the water below the .heatingcoil remainsrelatively cold. 1 1

2. In a hot water tank adapted for providing selected-quantities ofhotwater, an electric heating element comprising a support mounted onthe wall of said tank, elongated non-heating lead members secured tosaid supporti and projecting laterally therefrom into'said tank,heating-coils extending within said tank' and secured to the inner endof said non-heating leads, and said .s.aid tan ,..sai.d.co ils beingoffset from said support and shaped to the curvature of the tank 'wall,and said support being rotatable to rotate 1'5. said'coils' to aplurality of selected heating positions to. supply selected quantitiesof hot water under stratification. of the water wherein the water abovethe coils is hot and the water below the coils remains relatively cold.

4. In a hot water tank adapted for providing -select'ed quantities ofhot-water,v a flange member- 'se'cured to the wall of the tank. around.an opening therein sealed againstleakage of water contained-in thetank,. heating coils disposed within said tank. tozheat water. thereinandsupported from said'flange member in a position radially 'ofiset fromtheflange member. by nonheating lead members extending between the'coils.. .and flange, and said flange member being adapted to. be.secured: to the wall of .the tank in .a plurality of different radialpositions to change the location of. said... coils within the tank forsupplying selected quantities of hot water under stratification oftheqwater wherein the water :above thecoils is. hot and the water belowthe coils remains relatively cold.

v 5. An electric storage water heater comprising a vertically disposedwater, storage tank. having a side wall .withxan opening therein, anelectric heating element disposed within the tank, a support for saidheating element. disposed. in and closing said openingin theside wall ofthetank and adapted to carry'the entireheating element radially offsetfrom the opening, and means to securesaid-support in aselectedrotational position to said tank wall whereby the heatingelement may bedisposedata selected height within the tankto supply apredetermined quantity of hot water under stratification. between thehot 50 water above the element and the relatively cold water below theelement.

WALDO W. HIGGINS.

REFERENCES crrEn' STATES IF'NIENTS Number Name Date 1,698,596. Hynes'Jan. 8, 1929 2 375,871. .Reifenberg. May 15, 1945 .1. 2,380,545- fP'a-nkow July 21, 1945

